Novak Djokovic registers 400th Masters 1000 match win in Indian Wells, inches closer to Rafael Nadal's record

Novak Djokovic, who has won a record 24 Grand Slam singles titles, the highest ever by a player (male or female), has just registered his 400th win in a Masters 1000 tournament, at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

The Serb beat unseeded Australian Aleksander Vukic in three sets in his opening match of the tournament. With this, he inched closer to Rafael Nadal in terms of number of victories in Masters 1000 events. Nadal has won 406 matches in the same category of events, the most by a player since ATP 1000 tournaments began in 1990.

Djokovic also has the best winning percentage of 82.3% (400-86) at Masters 1000 events. He is closely followed by Nadal, who has a 82.2% (406-88) record. The Serb has the record for most career Masters 1000 titles, at 40. Nadal, who has won 22 Grand Slams, the second best performance by a man at the Majors, also has the second most wins at Masters 1000 events with 36.

The World No. 1 is the only player to have won all nine Masters 1000 tournaments at least once in his career, a feat known as a 'Career Golden Masters'. In fact, he has achieved a 'Double Career Golden Masters', having won them at least twice each. He has participated in the most number of finals at Masters 1000 tournaments (58).

Djokovic has spent the most weeks as world No. 1 on the ATP Tour, a record total of 415 weeks. He is guaranteed to stay No. 1 till April 1, extending his record to 418 weeks.

The Serb now has 100 weeks more at the No. 1 position than any other man in ATP rankings history. Roger Federer was the top-ranked player for a total of 310 weeks, including 237 consecutive weeks.

Djokovic also holds the record for the most year-end No. 1 finishes, having achieved the feat eight times including the pandemic-shortened season in 2020. While he does not have to defend too many points in the first half of the season, the going would get tough once the French Open starts in May.

The Serb would have to defend his Roland Garros crown with 2000 points are on the line. He also has to defend 2000, 1200 and 1000 points at the US Open, Wimbledon and the Cincinnati Masters.

Novak Djokovic to face Luca Nardi in 3R at Indian Wells

Novak Djokovic at the BNP Paribas Open 2024 in Indian Wells

Noval Djokovic is set to face Italy's Luca Nardi in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. He will be playing against Nardi for the first time in his career.

The Serb is participating at the event for the first time since 2019. Indian Wells was the first major sporting event to be cancelled following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Djokovic was missing from the tournament for three years in a row, two of those years because he was barred from entering the US due to his unvaccinated status.

Djokovic is a five-time champion at Indian Wells and has won the event three times in a row between 2014 and 2016. He won the tournament in 2008, 2011, 2014, 2015 and 2016.